5 ms·

They have single-handedly managed to ridicule serious mental conditions like autism and adhd by turning them into quirky character traits, which has swept over

They have single-handedly managed to ridicule serious mental conditions like autism and adhd by turning them into quirky character traits, which has swept over to other platforms as well. ADHD is now the lack of motivation. OCD has been hit just as badly. It is being used synonymously with liking order and cleanliness (which almost every human does). And the most bizarre out of the bunch is the pseudo-personality disorder community on tiktok. They come up with names like 'shade' and 'lucius' for their supposed 'alters', all of which have assigned functions like 'the gatekeeper' and 'the emotional supporter', and can of course be activated on demand in front of a camera. And get this, none of them are diagnosed (only 'self-dxed') because supposedly the medical system is biased and treats them unfairly.

deleted 5y ago
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slibhb 5y ago
I think you are correct to link this stuff to changes in how people think about autism, OCD, etc. I would also link it to the return of astrology and the proliferation of terms like asexual/demisexual/etc. Ultimately all of these trends have to do with how people conceptualize identity. It's not clear how harmful any of this is but boy is it weird.
- camtarn 5y ago
  I mean, sort of, yes, but that's an extremely broad bucket you've built. Lots of things are to do with identity: nationality, political party, etc. 'HN reader' is a fairly strong identity! The difference comes in the utility of that identity. If somebody is latching onto something which drives them to believe that getting one particular type of medication is the one and only way to fix their life, despite not really fitting the diagnostic criteria for the associated condition, I'd say that's a problem. Getting a new label (like asexual) which lets you make sense of your life and probably doesn't change your existing behaviour at all, let alone make you want treatment, I'd say is beneficial.
pgcj_poster 5y ago
> They come up with names like 'shade' and 'lucius' for their supposed 'alters' all of which have assigned functions like 'the gatekeeper' and 'the emotional supporter' and can of course be activated on demand in front of a camera. If people really did have multiple personalities, it would be more surprising if they didn't come up with terms to describe them. I also don't see why it should be impossible for them to switch intentionally at least some of the time. Perhaps a lot of these people are pretending, essentially acting the parts of imaginary friends. I honestly don't see a problem with that. A lot of people seem to benefit from talking to God, who I also suspect is imaginary, and that's fine so long as they don't harm others as a result. If someone feels better being "Alice" at one time and "Bob" at another, then I'm happy to accept them as such. And on the off chance that their mind really is split into multiple consciousnesses, then it would be really shitty to mock or marginalize them for it.

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slibhb 5y ago

I think you are correct to link this stuff to changes in how people think about autism, OCD, etc. I would also link it to the return of astrology and the proliferation of terms like asexual/demisexual/etc. Ultimately all of these trends have to do with how people conceptualize identity. It's not clear how harmful any of this is but boy is it weird.

camtarn 5y ago
I mean, sort of, yes, but that's an extremely broad bucket you've built. Lots of things are to do with identity: nationality, political party, etc. 'HN reader' is a fairly strong identity! The difference comes in the utility of that identity. If somebody is latching onto something which drives them to believe that getting one particular type of medication is the one and only way to fix their life, despite not really fitting the diagnostic criteria for the associated condition, I'd say that's a problem. Getting a new label (like asexual) which lets you make sense of your life and probably doesn't change your existing behaviour at all, let alone make you want treatment, I'd say is beneficial.

pgcj_poster 5y ago

> They come up with names like 'shade' and 'lucius' for their supposed 'alters' all of which have assigned functions like 'the gatekeeper' and 'the emotional supporter' and can of course be activated on demand in front of a camera. If people really did have multiple personalities, it would be more surprising if they didn't come up with terms to describe them. I also don't see why it should be impossible for them to switch intentionally at least some of the time. Perhaps a lot of these people are pretending, essentially acting the parts of imaginary friends. I honestly don't see a problem with that. A lot of people seem to benefit from talking to God, who I also suspect is imaginary, and that's fine so long as they don't harm others as a result. If someone feels better being "Alice" at one time and "Bob" at another, then I'm happy to accept them as such. And on the off chance that their mind really is split into multiple consciousnesses, then it would be really shitty to mock or marginalize them for it.